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I figured the reasoning had something to do with that, but then I wondered why March 15 was the cut-off? The beach isn't officially open until Memorial Day, anyway, so what's with the extra 10 weeks of no kite flying? Turns out it has something to do with bird migration. Apparently they mistake kites for predators and get spooked. That's understandable. Honestly though, the woman wasn't really all that enthused about asking me to stop. She was almost apologetic about it. More like a "just doing her job" type thing, not so much the typical smugness that comes with catching teenagers with beer, ect. No big deal, it all turned out okay in the end...

Where there's a will, there's a bay!

Apparently it's totally legal to fly your kite across the street! You can do anything on the bay. Notice all those birds?! There weren't any on the main beach. Go figure. I get the impression if you were to spit on the beach they'd haul you away in chains, yet you could dump bodies in the bay all afternoon and no one would bat an eyelash. It seems like a free for all over there.

I remember a photo a while back of a beach someone posted where you cant fly kites because of a specific birds nesting ground and the eco nuts say the kites scare the birds into not laying. The photo was of a flock of those birds trailing a stunt kite in formation and another of the same birds sitting on the kite and around it when on the ground lol. I can't remember where those pics are though.

The knot will slide anyway to the prussik knot at the tow point in the "Forgiving settings" photo making it a 3 point settings.It will also slide between the other knots making the turbo leg longer for Radical (5cm) and shorter on the Forgiving (3cm).

This is in the Prism manual for the Quantum and Hypnotist.

And another knot on the QPro bridle

With all the respect i have for you and your experience in this field Ant i think this is the right diagram and settings

The knot will slide anyway to the prussik knot at the tow point in the "Forgiving settings" photo making it a 3 point settings.It will also slide between the other knots making the turbo leg longer for Radical (5cm) and shorter on the Forgiving (3cm).

If your inhaul is sliding down to the prussic knot making it a 3-point setting then your not placing the inhaul larks head in the right spot for the forgiving setting. IF you do it shouldn't end up at the prussic on its own. THe settings are 3 cm (forgiving knot) and 5 CM (radical knot). It should be above (pilot side) the 3 cm knot for forgiving or above the 5cm knot for radical. Even the instructions say "Move to" the knot whitch is there to lock the inhaul in the setting. If your inhaul is sliding on its own as you fly your not adjusting it right. Either that or I completely misunderstood your statement. HOwever, Yes that is the right diagram

Ant, moving the knot means past it above the knot for it not to move/slide to the initial position. This is logic here!Who will just slide it near the knot knowing it will slide back after during flight???

The OP shared a photo with marks showing the "Radical" and "Forgiving" turbo leg length and range..but we know the in-haul will just slide to the closest knot to the tow point during flight.So original photo is on "Forgiving" mode and the "Radical" mode is past the knot located between the middle and ring finger of the OP not as described.Thus representing the last diagram by Prism.

From the photo you posted, the kite is setup to Forgiving setting and i think it is set there from factory. For now you will only need to slide the prussik knot towards or further from the nose for wind conditions.With time and when you get more agile in your corners and straight lines tracking, you can experiment with the turbo leg and move the knot pass the second one (from your picture) and your kite will be in Radical mode. Or when you head to the beach and get some clean winds, give it a try and see the changes yourself.Besides this, there is no great settings you can do to the hypnotist...not for now Perhaps change the tensioning system on the knocks and get vinyl covers for them..this will solve some wing tips snagging when you will start tricking..adding yoyos on the hypnotist..the holes are already there (you will see them about halfway on the LE)

But don;t worry about all this and practice your launches and landings and being able to stall the kite properly..then other things will come with time...

Heeeyyy you are getting there...slowly but sure you re getting there..try giving some more slack after the snap to land the kite smoothly.You will see that with time and practice you will be able to land in any part of the wind window Just give enough slack depending on the wind conditions to slow down the kite..The key here is to walk/run to the same speed as the wind for the kite to loose enough power and not to lift to fly..snaps will kill the kite drive but works best with immediate slack after

Ant, moving the knot means past it above the knot for it not to move/slide to the initial position. This is logic here!Who will just slide it near the knot knowing it will slide back after during flight???

The OP shared a photo with marks showing the "Radical" and "Forgiving" turbo leg length and range..but we know the in-haul will just slide to the closest knot to the tow point during flight.So original photo is on "Forgiving" mode and the "Radical" mode is past the knot located between the middle and ring finger of the OP not as described.Thus representing the last diagram by Prism.

Wait, so then the factory setting is nether "forgiving" or "radical" being that the larks is not actually on one of the knots, but between them?!

I still understand that these settings have nothing to do with wind conditions, but I still would like to know what the others settings do and where they are located. Now I'm really confused.

There isn't much difference in actual wind range but there is a BIG difference in level of control for the new flier. In low wind the radical setting gets exagerated. Since its so easy to over control the kite even in normal winds on it and a new flier already has a tendency to over react on a control input I always recomend the forgiving setting on the turbo leg. As for the other settings it is the prussic knot on the out and up hauls you need to adjust. WHen I teach a new flier I always set a kite for the lowest wind so they don't have to worry about adjusting it while learning the basics. THis way they can fly as long as there is wind in the kites range and if it doesn't fly then you know the wind is to low.

It's getting a bit easier, but I'm still having troubles sticking it every time. I definitely need to work on the stall by matching the wind's spoed like you said, but I'm also having difficulty keeping the kite level on the way down. Many times I was sooo close to landing, but at the last second the nose would wobble toward the center of the window and shoot right up in the air again. Actually, that second video was just the last few seconds of a MUCH longer one of me attempting to land and just not being able to commit to it.

Edit: I think I understand now, Anthony. I'm going out today to that very same park to play around with the settings a bit. Watch today I'll get 10mph+ when I'm hoping for lower speeds.

Many times I was sooo close to landing, but at the last second the the nose wobbled toward the center of the window and shot right up in the air again.

That is where slack is needed K...The kite will drive and landing in the edge of the window and the nose will point towards the center as there is wind there to lift it..this is where you need to give slack either by walking or extending the arms in front to kill the kite drive and land it on the two wing tips Also landing on both tips is a good way to practice control on each wing and this will help you for fine inputs rather than hard pull/push on the lines

There's not a whole lot of "snap" or "stall" in there, but I suppose it's better than slamming the nose into the ground at 40mph. Baby steps, right?

Hehe I can see you working to force yourself to keep your elbows at your side Keep working on that habit and remember to pull back toward your hips instead of out to your side. YOu already a bit smoother on control. For now concentrate on figures and the basic stall (edge of the window stall). Vary that stall from normal entry and from a down ward turn with a quick turn back toward the center so you feel the point where the kite stalls. THen you can work in the side slide. I Find this method of startin out teaches you more about controlling the kite and gives you more of a feel for the kite than any other method and I use it every time I pick up a new kite.

The snap stall is difficult. THe timing and intensity of the inputs have to be spot on or it won't stall and you really have to practice it in the middle of the wind window (power zone) to get it down right.

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